McIntosh County is a beautiful and ecologically diverse rural community, located on Georgia's Southeastern Coast. It is also one of the poorest counties in the state of Georgia.
After having one of the largest seafood industries on the south Atlantic coast in the 60s, the community witnessed a steady decline of its once booming economy due to rising
operating costs and foreign shrimp imports. This devastated the county and caused many McIntosh residents to lose their jobs, businesses, property, and homes. Without any
major employment industries, a group of concerned citizens came together to collectively discuss their needs and brainstorm how to bring about change to their community.

In 1997, a group of approximately 150 citizens gathered at a local African American church - Elm Grove Community Church - to discuss long-standing poverty, environmental
degradation, oppressive political power dynamics, and common concerns of community members. The meeting was an unprecedented gathering between black and white
community members in the 250-year history of McIntosh County. And while the group unified to discuss the challenges and their exclusion from political and economic decision
making in the county, community members also recognized that their rich culture and history were opportunities for McIntosh County to flourish. It is through that hopeful energy
that what is now McIntosh SEED was formed.

The organization was created to build trusting relationships between McIntosh County's low-income communities and local government officials to improve community members'
involvement in decision-making processes and to increase their access to resources. Over the years, McIntosh SEED has expanded our commitment to creating and sustaining
healthy and diverse rural communities through community and economic development, community organizing, land preservation, and direct services to communities and
organizations across the Southeast, including the Alabama Black Belt and the Mississippi Delta. By working across the Southeast region, through support and technical
assistance, McIntosh SEED has a broader impact on the social change movement by helping organizations expand and enhance their programs to improve their ability to
move people out of poverty and improve their livelihoods.

Mission & Approach

Mission:

McIntosh SEED works to create and sustain healthy and diverse rural communities through community
and economic development, community organizing, conservation, and direct services across the Southeast

Approach:

We believe that our work has the most impact when it is driven by the social, economic, environmental, and cultural interests of the
community. Specifically, we take the following initial steps:

Create space where the community can share their wisdom, knowledge and experiences

Connect these experiences through common themes to build trusted relationships between individuals & organizations

Develop practical tools that will help their communities, organizations, and/or networks develop shared analyses, goals, and strategic work plans

Through this process, we are able to organize equitable multi-sector relationships and partnerships that enhances the
knowledge, skills, and collective power needed for improving communities and creating lasting impact.

Additionally, we work to preserve and uplift the natural resources, labor force, and youth of rural communities to improve their local economies,
the environment, and social conditions. This place-based systems approach to community development creates and retains wealth in rural communities.